Notre Dame Wide Receiver Jeff Samardzija has decided not enter the NFL Draft, and has instead accepted a contract to play baseball for the Chicago Cubs. He has signed a 5 year deal worth $10 million, with a $2.5 million signing bonus.
The Cubs drafted Samardzija last year in the fifth round of the MLB draft. He then returned to Notre Dame to play football, where he was one of the top players in the entire NCAA.
Samardzija swears he is finished with football. He makes it clear that he has no intention of ever returning to a sport where he displayed such an incredible amount of raw talent. There was little doubt that he would have been selected very early in the first round of the NFL draft, and would most likely have been one of the first 10 players selected.
What was he thinking?
The average first round pick in the NFL walks away with a $3 million signing bonus. NFL rules limit the contract to a maximum of 6 years for the first 15 players chosen, and five years for all players chosen after that. And the NFL salary cap rules typically result in contracts packed with incentive based bonuses and guaranteed payouts over several years.
The average NFL first round pick will play in seven games his rookie year, but instantly becomes a household name in his new home city. Factor in endorsement deals, and the NFL first round selections come end up with a pretty fat paycheck for limited work
The Baseball draft is rarely talked about. Only the most hardcore fans of the sport can tell you the name of the first player selected in the last draft (I looked it up: Kansas City selected Luke Hochevar, a pitcher.) Player drafted are almost always sent immediately to a minor league affiliate, where their careers linger for years. In the event they ever do get called up to the ‘Big League’, most are shipped back to the minors after a game or two. For players selected in the later rounds… players like Samardzija… the odds of ever playing in a major league game are slim.
So why choose baseball over football? Its not because baseball is safer. As a pitcher, Samardzija has a particularly short shelf-life. Many pitchers develop chronic arm and elbow injuries early in their careers. Major surgeries are now commonplace in the effort to extend a pitcher’s career. Add in the other common injury risks… hit by a pitch, hit by a ball in play, injured while running the bases, or a simple trip and fall… and baseball rosters often have as many injured players as a football roster.
Baseball is not a sport where its any easier to maintain physical conditioning during the offseason. Baseball players require high levels of cardio stamina and strength conditioning. The offseason is much shorter for baseball players, so they have less recovery time between seasons. And the long schedule results in overall fatigue in a player’s body from just the traveling each week.
So why would Samardzija choose baseball over football? Why would he sacrifice instant fame, millions more in pay, and better odds of joining the starting lineup, and instead choose a potentially long stint in minor leagues with no guarantee that he will ever wear a major league uniform?
The Cubs drafted Samardzija last year in the fifth round of the MLB draft. He then returned to Notre Dame to play football, where he was one of the top players in the entire NCAA.
Samardzija swears he is finished with football. He makes it clear that he has no intention of ever returning to a sport where he displayed such an incredible amount of raw talent. There was little doubt that he would have been selected very early in the first round of the NFL draft, and would most likely have been one of the first 10 players selected.
What was he thinking?
The average first round pick in the NFL walks away with a $3 million signing bonus. NFL rules limit the contract to a maximum of 6 years for the first 15 players chosen, and five years for all players chosen after that. And the NFL salary cap rules typically result in contracts packed with incentive based bonuses and guaranteed payouts over several years.
The average NFL first round pick will play in seven games his rookie year, but instantly becomes a household name in his new home city. Factor in endorsement deals, and the NFL first round selections come end up with a pretty fat paycheck for limited work
The Baseball draft is rarely talked about. Only the most hardcore fans of the sport can tell you the name of the first player selected in the last draft (I looked it up: Kansas City selected Luke Hochevar, a pitcher.) Player drafted are almost always sent immediately to a minor league affiliate, where their careers linger for years. In the event they ever do get called up to the ‘Big League’, most are shipped back to the minors after a game or two. For players selected in the later rounds… players like Samardzija… the odds of ever playing in a major league game are slim.
So why choose baseball over football? Its not because baseball is safer. As a pitcher, Samardzija has a particularly short shelf-life. Many pitchers develop chronic arm and elbow injuries early in their careers. Major surgeries are now commonplace in the effort to extend a pitcher’s career. Add in the other common injury risks… hit by a pitch, hit by a ball in play, injured while running the bases, or a simple trip and fall… and baseball rosters often have as many injured players as a football roster.
Baseball is not a sport where its any easier to maintain physical conditioning during the offseason. Baseball players require high levels of cardio stamina and strength conditioning. The offseason is much shorter for baseball players, so they have less recovery time between seasons. And the long schedule results in overall fatigue in a player’s body from just the traveling each week.
So why would Samardzija choose baseball over football? Why would he sacrifice instant fame, millions more in pay, and better odds of joining the starting lineup, and instead choose a potentially long stint in minor leagues with no guarantee that he will ever wear a major league uniform?
For the Love of the Game. Why else?
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